one shot

I know this picture is not great. I had to take it peeking through a window so they wouldn't move. This is Zombie and Roxi's new favorite hobby - cuddling in the sun. I think they are still thawing out from Oregon. They love having a yard and just hanging out all day. These little guys just make my heart so warm!
We received all of our goods, so now we are just getting the house in order. More photos to come!
-chianne.

We're back!

We are finally here in Dunedin, FL which means we have purchased a new computer and are connected to the internet. I can blog again! Devin's new job is working at Airstation Clearwater on C-130's. He hasn't gone back to work yet, so hopefully he loves it. We picked to rent a house site-unseen which was a scary thing. We were relieved when we got here to find we had picked the perfect little house for us. We live steps from the community center which has a nice gym for Devin and yoga classes for myself at a fraction of what we would pay elsewhere. Our neighbors have all been so welcoming and kind to us. Zombie and Roxi are in love with their first ever, fenced-in backyard. All-in-all, life on the Gulf has been good to us so far.
I have a lot to blog about, so I will break it up over a few posts. For starters, enjoy a few shots from Devin's A-school graduation.

I just think this accidental shot is funny.

love,

chianne.

R.I.P. Laptop...

Well, I had every intention of posting about day to day life here at Sam Allen. However, one day, several weeks ago, the laptop would not turn on. We knew this day was coming but did not expect it so soon. As we live in a furnished house, there is a computer here to use, but it is unbelievably slow, so we don't use it too often. Also, I don't have a way to upload the photos I take, unless I showed you my iPhone photos, but then why would I have Instagram? The photos will just have to wait for a future time when we buy a new computer, which will be probably after we move to our new station.
Speaking of which, Devin put in his "dream sheet" last Monday. You put your top 3 places you'd like to go. When the list of available places comes out, you're only allowed to pick one of your top 3. If none of your top 3 are available, then you can pick anything from the list. They also pick in order of their class rank. It's a complicated process and quite frankly, makes me feel like the stars will have to align and hell will have to freeze over for us to go anywhere we want to go. Devin really wants to work on the Dolphin 65 helicopters.

 I did not take this photo, just found it on Google. If he were to get stationed on this particular type of helo, it gives him a lot of options of places to be stationed in the future. We will find out where we are going sometime this next week. We are both so anxious to know. I just want to be able to start planning and get all our ducks in a row. It's hard work moving with only 6 weeks notice! That's all for now. Next time I write will probably be to inform the masses where we will be moving at the end of June. Until then -
love,
chianne

Sam Allen and Aurora

Playing fetch while I relaxed in the sun!

We are all settled in at the waterfront cottage the owners have named "Sam Allen". It's so peaceful and even though it's furnished with the owner's things, we have felt so at home here. We have been able to go canoeing, and Devin is making use of the kayak and fishing equipment. The dogs LOVE it here. They love sitting in the sun room and watching the water and the birds. All the dogs roam free around here, so we regularly have several dogs in the yard playing. Roxi will even run off and visit her friends (her favorites being a little white dog named Jack, and a golden retriever who also is named Roxi), and then return home later. We even took them out in the canoe one day! Roxi thought it was amazing. Zombie was a little more nervous but got used to it. I fell in the water by accident, and to my surprise it wasn't very cold considering it was only 70 degrees out. Roxi has gone for a swim a few times after watching the lab next door jump off the dock and chase down toys in the water. Zombie is not so interested in swimming, but I think that will change when the heat of summer comes. We have to drive a little further to get to town and work, but we have no regrets.

Spectacular sunsets from the back deck - every night.

Devin's doing well in school. He currently has a 95% in class. They take several tests a week, and he is constantly studying or doing homework. In 3 months (to the day!) Devin will be graduating, and we will be moving to wherever the Coast Guard decides to send us next. We won't know until May where that might be. The suspense is killing me! I'm not even going to tell you where we want to go, because we literally change our minds every day based on which aircraft Devin likes most each day. Not every aircraft is at every air station, so whichever one he picks will narrow down the places we are able to go. There are just so many factors to consider!

Aunt Chynee and baby Aurora!

Last week, I was able to take the week off work and visit my sister, brother-in-law, and their new baby, Aurora. It seriously blows my mind that my sister grew that little girl in her belly for 9 months! I haven't been able to spend that much time around that young of a baby before, so it was a learning experience on many levels. It was such a nice trip.

The only downside is that those harborers of all things germy, AKA airplanes, seem to have infected me with a mean cold now. I'm already on my second box of tissues. Ah, well! It seems my obsession with hand sanitizer did not spare me this time...

I think that's all for now!

love,
chianne.

Moving! (again.)

Devin and I were so lucky to have friends offer to house us while he was in a-school. It enabled me to move out here with him and land a great job at a busy salon. Now that we are here, something fell into our laps that was too good to resist. We heard of a couples' vacation home on the Albemarle Sound here that they were looking to rent out. It's a charming remodeled cottage with spectacular water views and a dock you can use. They have a kayak, canoe, and skiff that they have welcomed us to use. We figured, "Carpe Diem!" When would we ever get to live at a waterfront property again??

The backside of the house that faces the water. Look at all those windows!

Our new backyard :)

-Chianne.